Genetic Manipulation of Wild Human Gut Bacteroides

Abstract

Human gut Bacteroides species exhibit strain-level differences in their physiology, ecology, and impact on human health and disease. However, existing approaches for genetic manipulation generally require construction of genetically modified parental strains for each microbe of interest or defined medium formulations. In this report, we introduce a robust and efficient strategy for targeted genetic manipulation of diverse wild-type Bacteroides species from the human gut. This system enables genetic investigation of members of human and animal microbiomes beyond existing model organisms.